I don’t know the details of her situation, but the moment I heard my young friend ask this question, I remembered something God taught me one of the first years of our marriage.

I was driving home from work with a small Christmas bonus that I had not expected. I was THRILLED because we were just barely making ends meet and had no money for Christmas gifts. Then I heard a funny sound from my car – then it stopped in the road! GRRRR! I knew my Christmas money was gone. But as I sat there crying and waiting for my husband to come get me, I heard the Lord say, “I was not surprised by this car problem, and I provided for your need before you had it.”

I couldn’t believe that I had not recognized the Lord’s loving provision. Without that Christmas bonus, I would have had no money for the car repair, so in His great love for me, He arranged for me to have the resources before I had the need. How I love His ways!

Faith is the first step through the doorway to Heaven’s kingdom, but Love is the path that leads us from the doorway to maturity. Believers must never again return to worldly love. This is why Jesus warns us not to let our Christian, or brotherly, Love grow cold.

Keeping it real,

**************
Photo Source: Peter Friederich

Photo courtesy of: Clipart ETC

“I call heaven and earth to witness against you.” This very interesting phrase caught my attention recently, so I started searching it out in God’s Word.

Deu 4:26 I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that you will soon utterly perish from the land which you cross over the Jordan to possess; you will not prolong your days in it, but will be utterly destroyed.

Deu 30:19 I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;

Deu 31:28 Gather to me all the elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speak these words in their hearing and call heaven and earth to witness against them.

It’s Truth That Is Called On As A Witness Against Us

Psa 146:6-9 Who made heaven and earth, The sea, and all that is in them; Who keeps truth forever, Who executes justice for the oppressed, Who gives food to the hungry. The LORD gives freedom to the prisoners. The LORD opens the eyes of the blind; The LORD raises those who are bowed down; The LORD loves the righteous. The LORD watches over the strangers; He relieves the fatherless and widow; But the way of the wicked He turns upside down.

No One Can Hide From The Truth

Jer 23:24 Can anyone hide himself in secret places, So I shall not see him?” says the LORD; “Do I not fill heaven and earth?” says the LORD.

God Is Possessor Of Heaven And Earth

Gen 14:19 And he blessed him and said: “Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth;

Gen 14:22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand to the LORD, God Most High, the Possessor of heaven and earth,

Conclusion

What I learned wasn’t really anything new, but it is so much more powerful to see it spelled out in God’s own Words. Being ‘real’ and truthful with ourselves and God is a very important decision we need to make on a daily basis.

Keeping it real,

Fear corrodes our confidence in God’s goodness. It turns us into control freaks. It deadens our recall, and creates a form of spiritual amnesia… it dulls our miracle memory. It makes us forget what Jesus has done and how GOOD God is. When fear shapes our lives, safety becomes our god.

~Max Lucado, Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Photo courtesy of: mikebaird

Fear is a default reaction when we feel we are not in control, and it often causes us to lash out at others with false accusations. We see a perfect example of this when the disciples encountered a storm while crossing the Sea of Galilee.

The disciples did not ask about Jesus’ strength.

“Can you still the storm?”

They did not ask about His knowledge.

“Are you aware of the storm?”

Nor did they ask about His know-how.

“Do you have any experience with storms?”

But rather, they raised doubts about Jesus’ character.

“Do you not care?”

Anxiety Causes Us to Forget God’s Love and His Power

Obviously, the disciples had forgotten the point of the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus spoke at length about His deep concern for human welfare. Apparently, they did not recall how His heart went out to the grieving widow when He raised her only son, who had just died. For a moment, they did not remember how Jesus had lovingly cured many who had diseases, sicknesses, blindness, and evil spirits. But recalling these things would have helped them overcome their fear. It would have taken their mind off the power of the storm and put it on the power of One who could calm the storm … and perhaps that would have helped them think to humbly ask the Lord for help, rather than insult Him with a false accusation.

This post was inspired by Max Lucado’s book, Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Keeping it real,

Men are never duly touched and impressed with a conviction of their insignificance, until they have contrasted themselves with the majesty of God.

~Francis Chan, Crazy Love

Photo courtesy of: tomalen

Let the chill bumps begin!

I know you will be awe struck with God if you take 3 minutes to watch this video and realize how VERY special we must be for Him to have chosen us out of all the galaxies of His enormous creation.

This post was inspired by Francis Chan’s latest book, Crazy Love

Keeping it real,

Love is the most basic building block of our relationship with Christ. Jesus tells us that, if we fulfill the Law of Love (i.e., love God and love your neighbor), we will satisfy all the law and abide in Christ! Look at the following passages:

Rom 13:10,  Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

John 15:10a,   If you keep My commandments [law], you will abide in My love.

As we live a life of love and respect for God and our neighbor, we will fulfill every commandment in God’s Word, as a by product. For example, if we love and respect our neighbor, we will not kill him, steal from him, allow him to go hungry, etc. If we love and respect God, we will not use His name in vain, allow other things to come before Him in our life, etc.

Honoring the Law of Love is how we ‘abide’ in Christ.

1Jn 2:10,  Whoever loves his brother lives [abides] in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble.

1Jn 3:17,  But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?

It is very important that we honor the Law of Love, because if we aren’t abiding in Christ, we will be among those who are gathered together and thrown into the Lake of Fire:

John 15:6,  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.

Pearl of Wisdom: In the last days, there will be a strong temptation to let our love grow cold, in other words there will be a strong temptation to be selfish, or self centered.

Mat 24:12-13,  And because lawlessness [wickedness] will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

James 1:12,  Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

The Law of Love is SO important because it will be rewarded with the Crown of Life.